BUTLER TOWNSHIP -- About 1,000 homeowners are still conserving water in one part of Luzerne County, just a day after a water shortage was discovered in the Beech Mountain Lakes complex. Spokespeople for the water company believe the cold weather has something to do with the problem at the development.
It's been a busy day and a half for Aqua Pennsylvania crews, working overtime to fix pipes and fill holes after they determined leaks were the cause of a water shortage within Beech Mountain Lakes near Hazleton.
"Between last night and this morning, they've brought in six tanker trucks of water, so they're keeping the tank filled as best as possible," said Beech Mountain Lakes general manager Theron Hausman.
Aqua discovered water was low in the storage tank that supplies water to about 1000 homes within the community. The reason? Aqua spokespeople say there are leaks, probably caused by the cold weather and varying temperatures.
"You know if we run out of water, it's cold. The pipes are going to freeze. It could definitely be an issue."
This is where crews are working to repair one of the five small leaks that they've found so far. But they still haven't found the big leak that's causing the water shortage.
Denise Duksta lives down the street from where crews are repairing leaks. She's confident the crews will be able to fix the problem and has no issue conserving water. But she's worried about the vacant homes.
"If no one's using the water in there, if there's a leak, it's going to cause things to freeze and obviously more pipes will bust and that will drain more of the water out," said Denise Duksta of Butler Township.
Aqua officials say they're checking the vacant homes while continuing to bring in more water tankers. But until the big leak is found and fixed, residents will continue to conserve water.
"The pressure's been fine. There's been enough. As long as people don't try to use to much, it'll be fine," said John Grandzol of Butler Township.
Once crews find the larger leak that's causing the problem. Officials say it could take a day to repair.
Water conservation inside Beech Mountain Lakes will continue until then.